Comments made on Facebook by tourism authority chairman Gavin Gulia, lambasting Brian May for urging the Maltese to vote down spring hunting, were “uncalled for”, the government said yesterday.
A Tourism Ministry spokeswoman said Dr Gulia “made the comment in his personal capacity and not in that of MTA chairman”.
“Despite this, [Tourism Minister Edward Zammit Lewis] believes that the comments were uncalled for and the subsequent controversy should have been avoided.”
Tourism Minister believes the comments were uncalled for and the controversy should have been avoided
The legendary Queen guitarist’s appeal against spring hunting incensed hunters and Dr Gulia too expressed his disapproval on Facebook: “I am not a hunter, nor have I ever held a shotgun or fired a shot. But I accept minorities, including hunters and trappers. It was not his place and he made a mistake in allowing people to use him.
“These antics should stop because they are a certificate of the way we’re still servile of colonialism. Do you think I need Brian May to form an opinion?
Dr May, an active animal rights campaigner who has campaigned against the culling of badgers, described the Maltese as a “fantastic bunch” and “full of friendliness” in his website brianmay.com.
He urged the UK to take a leaf out of Malta’s book on referenda, which can overturn the government’s decisions.
“In Malta, they have a tradition, held on to by a minority, but a powerful minority, in the face of the bulk of public opinion. They basically shoot all kinds of songbirds, including blackbirds and turtle doves, as they migrate through Maltese airspace.
“Can it be justified in terms of these people being hungry and needing to eat these small animals? No. Of course, not – this is just another manifestation of the vestiges of savagery in humans – it’s done for pleasure.
“It’s no use to appeal to these people on the grounds of compassion, or empathy, or even acquiescence to what most people regard as common decency. They have to be stopped by law, and the law has to be enforced.
“We need this kind of procedural law in the UK to ensure a government’s behaviour does not stray too far from what the country wants.”